Character sketch: The Warden

0
0



‘Excuse me!  Are you expecting to read the journal of Holes?  And I suggest you read through the whole passage.  But excuse me! I request you read it without asking a question.’
The above shows how the warden, who is in Holes, speaks to others.  She is the head of Camp Green Lake and always jabs others’ back with her pitchfork.  She monitors the camp and takes control of all staff and campers, such as giving commands to Mr. Sir and Mr. Pendanski, and also oversees how the campers dig the holes.
In the story, the warden is really autocratic.  She uses imperialism to monitor the campsite.  She usually stops others talking to follow her own way by saying ‘Excuse me!’  And she expects people to do things without asking even a question. She said, ‘And the next time I tell you to do something, I expect you to do it without questioning my authority.’  It’s obvious that the warden never accepts others’ opinions and she only commands others.
The warden is an ambitious woman.  She sets cameras inside the camp to watch the daily life of all campers.  So, she can ensure no one is cheating on her about what they have dug from the holes.  She has a great plan to find the things under the grounds many years ago.  She tells the campers to dig holes to build character.  In fact, she just wants them to help find some precious treasures underground in the past.
One day, one camper finds a gold tube while digging holes.  So, the warden keeps urging all campers to dig faster and faster.  She is impatient!  Not only that, she also supervises the boy every day to make them move faster.  She just can’t wait!
To reach her goal, the warden can do anything and become inhumane.  While those campers are having lunch, she makes them eat faster in a short period of time as she wants them to get back to work earlier. She forces them to follow her.  Once, a camper asks Armpit to return from a break and the warden sees him.  Therefore she asks Mr. Sir to fill in their canteens with less water as punishment.  Water is essential to survival while working in a hot place.  It is cruel of the warden to treat them so harshly!
The warden really has a strong and cool image in the story.  In fact, I don’t really like her but her image is strongly printed in my mind.  What do you think about her?